Are we sure Jackie Bradley Jr. is part of the Future?
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| (April 28, 2017 - Source: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images North America) |
Contributing Writer
Last year, Jackie Bradley Jr. seemed to cement himself in the Red Sox' outfield for the future. The day he began his 29-game hit streak in 2016, us Red Sox fans seemed to entirely discount the past and we seemed to drink a bit of the JBJ Kool Aid.
To be fair, JBJ had 26 home runs and 87 RBI last season and was a large part of the lineup. So to think he had finally come into his own at the plate was not the wrong move.
As of right now, things are not looking optimistic for the 27-year old centerfielder. He is batting .184 with one home run and 6 RBI. He has been absolutely terrible at the plate and not to make things worse, but he did hit into a triple play just last night.
At any rate, when you look more closely at JBJ's numbers from last season, you can easily see that there were a lot of holes in such a "great" season.
Post All-Star break last year, JBJ hit a measly .233. The most at-bats he had in a month last year was 106 and during that month (August), he had a batting average of .198.
Obviously Bradley Jr. is a defensive wizard, but does that matter more than being just a solid hitter? Do you want only his defense to be the reason for why he's in the lineup everyday?
What scares me the most is that aside from last season, JBJ has no track-record of being a good hitter. In 2013 and 2014, he hit under .200. In 2015, he had one good month.
He supposedly switched things up prior to last season but by the looks of things, those improvements do not seem to be doing anything as of right now.
I could be completely wrong; he could just be in a slump. Nonetheless, I do believe that this is something to watch out for because again, JBJ does not have a real track-record of being a great hitter.
He just doesn't.
Follow Evan Marinofsky on Twitter (@emarinofsky) for all of his Red Sox thoughts and opinions.
